6/13 Warmup Survey Link

Here is the link to the warmup survey for Social Studies for Wednesday.

Google Survey: Friday Rotation Choices

Here is the link for the survey to choose what activities you would like to do on Friday. 

Week of 5/14 - 5/18

This week in social studies, students are wrapping up their Maya, Aztec, and Inca Presentations while the class is taking notes on the slides.  Students will be allowed to use these notes to help them on the test that we will spend the second half of the week studying for (and taking).  This is the last week of our study of Maya, Aztec and Inca!

Here is the breakdown of the week:

• Monday
• Presentations & Note-taking
• Tuesday
• Some classes finish up presentations
• BrainPOP Review & Wrap up (turn in brainpop video notes)
• Finish Student-generated test question activity
• This activity is on Google classroom (classroom.google.com)
• Students write multiple choice test questions based on their presentations to the class
• Due Thursday 5/17
• Wednesday
• Finish Test Questions
• Study Guide
• Thursday
• Study Guide
• Friday
• Final Test over characteristics & achievements of Maya, Aztec, and Inca

Week of 5/7 - 5/11

This week in social studies is all about preparing for (and beginning) our Maya, Aztec, and Inca Presentations!  We are starting off the week with finishing up the last of the requirements in the Google Slides, like the bibliography and the Vocabulary Slide.  Then, students will have a chance to write up index cards to help during the presentation, and to practice what they will say with their group. 

The end of the week is a little off kilter, with the district track meet on Thursday, so some groups will begin presenting on Thursday, while others will begin on Friday.  The last item I hope to accomplish is a chance for students to write TEST questions about their presentation!  This assignment is available on Google Classroom.

Here is a breakdown of the week's activities:

• Monday
• Use www.easybib.com to create a Bibliography
• Begin Vocab 
• HOMEWORK - Finish Slides by Thursday (at the latest!)
• Tuesday
• Finish Vocabulary Slide (each student adds in one word and its definition)
• Begin Index Cards/Presentation Notes
• Wednesday
• Finish Index Cards
• Presentation Practice with group
• Thursday
• Begin Presentations and/or Test Questions (on Google Classroom)
• Friday
• Presentations
• Student Audience take notes

Week of 4/30 - 5/3

This week in Social Studies, students will be working to create a presentation on their topic over Maya, Inca, Aztec or the Achievements.  This will be done using Google Slides online - working with their group, each student will create 1 - 3 slides in a group presentation.  The slides are meant to teach the class about the topic.

Here is my predicted breakdown of the week:

• Monday 4/30
• Finish Online Source C-Notes
• Introduce requirements of Presentation
• Tuesday 5/1
• ROUGH DRAFT - Google Slide Presentation
• Students must finish all notes before beginning slide
• Wednesday 5/2
• Begin FINAL DRAFT - Google Slide Presentation
• Thursday 5/3
• Work on FINAL DRAFT of Google Slide Presentation
• ALL NOTES due TODAY
• Friday - NO SCHOOL

Identifying Spoof/Hoax Sites

Partner groups will be going to one of the following set of websites to evaluate and determine which one is a "hoax."  Use the resources provided by Ms. Superneau to help you identify which site is real and which site is fake.  Warning!  Some of the fake sites are very convincing! You will need to delve deeply and think critically!

On your worksheet, identify which site is real and which one is fake, and explain how you know.

Websites:

Pair 1: Chemistry
Dihydrogen Monoxide Research Division http://www.dhmo.org/ 
Carbon Monoxide http://www.cdc.gov/co/default.htm

Pair 2: Birth and genetics
Genochoice http://www.genochoice.com/
Gender Prediction Kits http://www.parents.com/pregnancy/my-baby/gender-prediction/gender-prediction-kits-are-they-accurate/

Pair 3: Water
Dehydrated Water http://www.instructables.com/id/Make-Your-Own-Dehydrated-Water/
International Water Association http://www.iwa-network.org/latest-news.php

Pair 4: Endangered animals
Save the Guinea Worm http://www.deadlysins.com/guineaworm/index.htm
Endangered species: Vaquita http://www.worldwildlife.org/species/finder/vaquita/vaquita.html

Pair 5: Cloning
Clones http://weeklyworldnews.com/headlines/27557/scientists-clone-dinosaur/
Cloning Fact Sheet https://www.genome.gov/25020028 https://www.genome.gov/25020028

Pair 6: Museums
The Museum of Jurassic Technology http://www.mjt.org/
The Virtual Museum of Bacteria http://www.micropia.nl/en/

Week of 4/23 - 4/27

This week in social studies, we are mostly focusing on research and online note-taking.  Students will learn some tricks for evaluating the reliability of websites, then will find a suitable informational website to gain more information about their FOCUS topic for the Maya, Inca, Aztec project.  Students will also learn some tricks for paraphrasing and putting things into their own words - then will take C-Notes on the information from their reliable source.

Here is a breakdown of the week:

• Monday
• Continue textbook FOCUS Topic C-Notes
• Tuesday
• Finish Textbook C-Notes (HW: DUE FRIDAY)
• Online Source Evaluation 
• BrainPOP Video Notes
• Wednesday
• Continue Online Source Evaluation
• Brainpop & Hoax Wksht
• Find a Reliable Source for your FOCUS Topic
• Thursday
• Paraphrasing/Plagiarism
• Begin Online Source C-Notes
• Friday
• Online Source C-Notes

Week of 4/16 - 4/20

This week in Social Studies, students are continuing their work on the Civilizations of the Americas project.  Last week, each student group chose/was assigned a particular civilization or topic on which to focus: Maya, Aztec, Inca, or the Achievements of all three civilizations, then began working on the reading notes associated with that chapter.  Students will be finishing those reading notes this week, as well as beginning Vocabulary C-notes on their assigned chapter.  Lastly, at the end of the week, each student will choose a topic within the chapter to focus on (we're calling it the "Focus Topic").  Students will become an expert on one aspect of their civilization - starting with C-Notes from the textbook.

Here is a breakdown of the week:

• Monday
• Continue Reading Notes
• Tuesday
• Finish Reading notes (due Friday 4/20)
• Check Answers
• Wednesday
• Vocabulary C-Notes (10 - 12 words, definitions, sentence & picture)
• Thursday
• Finish Vocab C-Notes (don't forget a summary!)
• Due Monday 4/23
• Friday
• Mini-tutorial: How to take notes from a textbook
• Focus Topic C-Notes

Week of 4/9 - 4/13

This week in Social Studies, after a little more overview of the three civilizations of Maya, Aztec and Inca, student groups will be selecting one topic to focus on and begin reading the chapter in the textbook on that topic.  The assignment will be to read the assigned chapter(s) and complete the reading notes.  We will be working on reading and notes this week and next, so there will be no new homework this week.

Here is the weekly breakdown:

• Monday
• BrainPOP Videos - Maya, Aztec & Inca
• Tuesday
• Kahoot Review
• Folder Cleanout
• Wednesday
• Choose Topics, Roles, Discuss Project
• Begin Reading Chapter & Reading Notes
• Thursday
• Continue Assigned Chapter & Reading Notes
• Friday - NO SCHOOL

Week of 4/2 - 4/6

This week in social studies, we are beginning study in a new area of the world - Central and South America!  We will be focusing our study on three main civilizations that dominated these areas during the middle ages time period: the Maya, Inca and Aztec Civilizations. 

This week, we are starting off our studies with a geography challenge, where students will become familiar with the physical and geographical features of the area, and how the geography affected the people who lived there.  Then, we will get an overview of the three civilizations with a video (paired with questions, of course!).  Lastly, we will finish off the week with a Kahoot to get everyone excited about the topic.

Here is a breakdown of the week:

• Monday - Tuesday
• Civilizations of the Americas Geography Challenge (due Friday)
• Wednesday - Thursday
• Maya, Inca, Aztec Video & Questions (Click here for link to video)
• Friday
• Finish Video (if necessary)
• Kahoot: Maya, Aztec, Inca

Week of 3/12 - 3/14

During this short week in social studies, we have a very simple goal: Read Chapter 15 and answer the questions in the Reading Notes about the chapter.  Chapter 15 is all about West Africa's Cultural Legacies.  It covers written and oral traditions, music, and visual arts.  It also discusses how these cultural achievements are still affecting and influencing our world today.  In class, we will also be watching several videos to help with our understanding of these concepts.  Please feel free to email to request the links to the videos we watched in class.

Here is a breakdown of the week:

• Monday - 15.1 - 15.2
• Tuesday 15.3
• Wednesday 15.4-15.5

Anything not finished in class should be finished at home for homework over the long weekend, due Monday.  Note: DO NOT worry about the middle page titled: Plot Summary and Notes on the story of Sundjata.  
 

Week of 3/5 - 3/9

Our second trimester is nearly over!  There is no school on Friday of this week, so all LATE/MISSING WORK from trimester 2 needs to be turned in by Thursday 3/8.  Wednesday March 14th is the last day of the trimester.

This week in social studies, we will be finishing up our last project of the trimester - West African Children's Book Project.  We will work on these in class on Monday and Tuesday, and they will be due Thursday 3/8.  This will be the last major graded item for the Trimester 2 Gradebook. 

Next, we will be starting a new chapter on West Africa - Ch. 15: The Cultural Legacy of West Africa.  In this chapter, students will learn about the written and oral traditions, as well as the music and visual arts of the West African people.  We'll begin the chapter this week with vocabulary C-Notes.

Here is a breakdown of the week:

• Monday - Tuesday
• FINISH Children's Book Project
• Final project due Thursday 3/8
• Wednesday
• Use Ch. 15 Vocab Quizlet to set up C-Notes
• Write words and definitions
• Thursday
• Finish C-Notes
• Sentences, Pictures, and Summary
• Notes due Monday 3/12 (First assignment of Trimester 3
• Friday - NO SCHOOL

Week of 2/26 - 3/2

In this full five-day week of Social Studies, we will be working to wrap up our studies of Chapter 12, on the Early Societies of West Africa.  To start the week, we will review the chapter with a study guide, then we will have our final test on Wednesday. 

At the end of the week, students will work on an artistic project that will show how small communities of families in West Africa developed into great kingdoms.  They will create small picture books that explain (in terms a 3rd grader can understand) why and how some communities grew and developed.

Here is a breakdown of the week's agenda:

• Monday 2/26
• Ch. 12 Study Guide
• Tuesday 2/27
• Finish Ch. 12 Study Guide
• Practice Vocabulary (Quizlet)
• Some students may begin children's book project
• Wednesday 2/28
• Ch. 12 Final Test
• Study Guide due today
• Thursday 3/1
• Everyone begin work on Children's Book Project
• Finish Rough Draft, if not done already (Rough draft is Processing 12 in reading notes - we actually started this last week and was due on Monday)
• Begin Final Draft - use grading rubric as guide while working
• Friday 3/2
• Continue work on Children's Book Project

Week of 2/20 - 2/22

This short week in social studies, we will be finishing the chapter 12 reading notes, then do a little bit of review.  Here is the breakdown for the week, as I see it...

• Monday - NO SCHOOL
• Tuesday
• Ch. 12 Reading Notes: 12.4 - 12.5
• Wednesday
• Ch. 12 Processing
• Thursday
• Ch. 12 Kahoot Review
• Friday - NO SCHOOL

Week of 2/12 - 2/16

This week in social studies, we will start out the week with wrapping up the Africa geography challenge from last week, then beginning our study of the vocabulary in chapter 12: Early Societies of West Africa.  Students will work independently to take C-notes on important terms from the chapter, using an online learning site called Quizlet (Link on the right side of this page).  They will be given 12 words, then use the site to get (and practice) the definitions of each word.  Students will then write original sentences that use the words correctly, and draw simple pictures to illustrate them. 

This week, students will also begin reading Chapter 12 and taking reading notes on the chapter.

Here is a breakdown of the week:

• Monday
• Finish Geography Challenge (due at end of class)
•  Begin Ch. 12 Vocab C-Notes (use Quizlet.com for definitions)
• Tuesday
• Finish Vocab C-Notes (due Friday 2/16)
• Wednesday
• Student-Led Conference Portfolio (in-class only)
• Begin Ch. 12 Reading Notes
• Preview 12
• Thursday - Friday: 
• Continue Ch. 12 Reading Notes
• Vocab C-Notes DUE today

Week of 2/5 - 2/9

This week in social studies, we will start off with three days to finish the Samurai and Tea Master Comic Project.  The final draft of that project will be due Friday 2/9, so if they don't finish in class, they will have a couple days to finish it for homework.

At the end of the week, we will be shifting gears (and continents!) entirely to begin our study of Western Africa at the time of the middle ages.  We will be starting with a geography challenge, in which students will familiarize themselves with the location, and how the geography affected the people that lived there.

Here is our weekly breakdown:

• Monday - Tuesday - Wednesday
• Work on Samurai and Tea Master Comic Strip
• Final project due Friday 2/9
• Thursday - Friday
• Western Africa Geography Challenge
• Geo challenge due Monday 2/12

Geo Challenge Questions:

Week of 1/29 - 2/1

My apologies for posting so late in the week this week!  First, I have a couple reminders. 

1. Last Friday, we took a test over Ch. 22 The Rise of the Warrior Class in Japan.  Many students were absent for this test, so this is just a reminder that if you missed class last Friday, or didn't take the test because you had missed so many days previously, you will need to come in after school or during lunch to take it.
2. This Friday there is no school for Progress Reports.  Any missing assignments to be included on the progress report sent home must be turned in by Thursday 2/1.  
3. I WILL, however, still accept late work after progress reports, until the end of the trimester.

Now, onto this week in Social Studies!  We have started reading a short traditional story from Japan titled "The Samurai and the Tea Master."  The link to the story is available on the right side of this page.  We are reading the story in class, and then students will work to create an accurate re-telling of the story in comic book form.  Keep an eye out for the assignment sheet with the grading guide at the bottom for all the project requirements.

We will be working on this project for this entire week, and part of next week in class, with a due date of next Friday, 2/9.

Here is the weekly breakdown:

• Monday
• Students who need to may finish/take Ch. 22 test
•  Everyone else, begin reading story and taking notes
• Tuesday
• Read story and take notes as a class
• Wednesday
• Intro Project
• Students begin brainstorming & rough draft
• Thursday
• Finish Rough Draft (HOMEWORK - due Monday)
• Begin Final
• Friday - NO SCHOOL

Week of 1/22 - 1/26

It's the first full 5-day week of 2018 . . . And it's gonna be a doozy in Social Studies!  This week, we will be finishing up Chapter 22 of History Alive (The Rise of the Warrior Class - all about medieval Japanese samurai), performing a second round of mini-skits, and preparing for, and taking, the final test about the chapter.  Phew!  That is a lot of work!

Here is a breakdown of the week:

• Monday
• Finish reading notes: 22.7 - 22.10  (read and answer questions)
• Tuesday
• Mini Skits (round 2) Assignment and Preparations*
• Wednesday
• Mini Skit Performances*
• Thursday
• Ch. 22 Study Guide
• Test Preparation Kahoot
• Friday
• Chapter 22 Final Test

* If a student is absent for the skits, they will be excused from the skits.
* Also, students can improve their scores last week's skits by improving in this week's skits!

Week of 1/16 - 1/19

This week in social studies, we are starting reading chapter 22, "The Rise of the Warrior Class" about the samurai of medieval Japan.  In class, we will be reading the chapter and completing a note packet covering the main concepts of the chapter.  Students will also be performing mini-skits in small groups to demonstrate the different aspects of samurai daily life.

Here is a breakdown of the week:

• Monday - NO SCHOOL
• Tuesday
• Read 22.1 - 22.3 & Reading Notes
• Wednesday
• 22.4 - 22.7 & Reading Notes
• Thursday
• Skit assignment & preparation
• Friday   
• Skit performances

Weeks of 1/3 - 1/11

Happy New Year!  I hope you all had a restful and enjoyable winter break!

Last week in social studies, with only three days, we mostly worked on getting back into routine.  We started with reviewing the test students took on the Friday before winter break, and did some expectations review.  On Thursday, we practiced writing summaries, and on Friday we started in on the geography of our new unit - Japan!

This week, we are finishing up the Geography challenge, then watching a history channel documentary on Samurai.  There are two links on the right side of this page to the videos we will be watching.  Students will also be given guided C-Note templates for note-taking during the video.  I am not 100% sure how long it will take to view the video, so we may move on and begin the chapter, or we may just work on finishing the video.  Check back here for updates.

Bi-Weekly Breakdown:

• Wednesday 1/3
• Kahoot Review: Expectations & Procedures
• Return & Discuss Chapter 5 Final test
• Thursday 1/4
• Summarizing Activity/Practice
• Turn in at the end of class
• Friday 1/5
• Begin Japan Geography Challenge (link to maps on right side of page)
• Questions & Worksheet available in classroom
• Monday 1/8
• Finish Japan Geography Challenge
• HOMEWORK - finish geo challenge (borrow set of questions from Ms. Superneau)
• Tuesday 1/9 - Wednesday 1/10
• "Deconstructing History: Samurai" Video & Notes
• "The Samurai" Video & Notes
• Thursday 1/11
• Finish Video and/or Chapter 22 Preview
• Friday 1/12 - NO SCHOOL